ECONOMICAL VIABILITY OF THE NUCLEAR OPTION IN MEXICO Instituto Nacional de Investigaciones Nucleares
45,576 MW Installed Capacity Fossil Fuel 66.8% Gas 32% CFE-2005
Electricity Generation TWh Nuclear contributes with about 5% since 1996 CFE-2005 Gas 52%
Forecast for Electricity Gross Consumption An increase of about 60% from 2005 to
Required Capacity There should be an addition of 22,126 MW 6,184 MW already Committed 15,942 MW Non Committed 9,764 Technology already specified 6,178 Free Technology
The Case for Nuclear High Volatility of Gas Prices Concern for CO2 Emissions Balanced Fuel Mix Economical Competitiveness
Levelized Cost Methodology Quantifies the unitary cost of electricity (the kWh) during the lifetime of a power plant The methodology considers the total electrical energy that the power plant will deliver in its lifetime
Levelized Cost Methodology Levelized cost is the sum of: Investment cost: which is the one generated during construction Production cost: is the one generated during the life of the plant, it includes Fuel cost and Operation and maintenance costs
OECD-2005 Levelized Total Generation Cost Benchmarking Plant Type DR % OECD USD/MWh ININ USD/MWh Min.Max.Min.Max. Gas Nuclear Gas Nuclear
Scenarios DR % 5 10 Gas Price$/MBTU Nuclear Construction Cost (Output 1350 MWe) $/kWe
Assumptions Plant TypeGasCoalNuclear Lifetime (Years)2540 Capacity Factor (%)80 90 Proper Uses (%) Power Output (MWe) Thermal Efficiency (%) Construction Time (Years)245 Overnigth Cost (USD/kWe) Fuel Cost * USD/mmBTU + USD/MWh 4.44 * 5.20 * 7.00 * 1.78 * O&M cost (USD/MWh)
Generation Cost (DR)
Capital Cost (DR)
Nuclear Generation Cost Assuming Delays
Levelized electricity generating cost assuming different capacity factors
Cash Flow* Type of Plant Investment Cost USD/kWe Power MWe Annual Gross Energy MWe 0&M Cost x10 6 USD/yr Gas ,802,82110 Nuclear Medium ,359,29276 *Without fuel costs
Present Value of the Cash Flow (DR 8%) Gas $/mmBTU; Gas $/mmBTU; Gas $/mmBTU
Generating Cost variability Due to Fuel Price Gas price at 0% is 4.44 USD/MBTU and Nuclear Fuel Cost is 6.80 USD/MWh –40% it is about 2.50 USD/mmBTU for the Gas price
Summary Even with delays of up to 3 years nuclear is competitive with the gas option, and it is still cheaper when gas price is greater or equal to 7 USD/mmBTU. Considering an 80% capacity factor, instead of 90% results in an increase of 4 USD/MW in the levelized cost.
Summary (cont.) When the price of gas is not less than 5.20 USD/mmBTU, the levelized cost of nuclear generated electricity is lower than the cost resulting from using natural gas, as long as construction time is not longer than 7 years.
Conclusion Nuclear power is competitive in all the scenarios considered, and it should be given serious consideration in the definition of Mexico’s additional electrical capacity program.